Dysonium
Dysonium is a transuranic element and the chief power source for space-flight vessels in the early 25th century. Dysonium is most commonly found in nature as microscopic crystals in rare minerals not occurring on Earth but present throughout the galaxy.@TomCostantino. "From the mind of our own Andre Bormanis and the design of Doug Drexler. A little @TheOrville �� “science” for y’all. #TheOrville @hulu @planetary_union @NASA @JackatNasa @On2Mars_Kayla". Twitter. Oct. 11, 2019. Description One of the most important uses of refined dysonium is in a ship's quantum engines, which enable faster-than-light speed travel. In the Planetary Union, dysonium is used to provide power all systems on board ships and shuttlecraft. Refined dysonium is extremely dense.@TomCostantino. "From the mind of our own Andre Bormanis and the design of Doug Drexler. A little @TheOrville �� “science” for y’all. #TheOrville @hulu @planetary_union @NASA @JackatNasa @On2Mars_Kayla". Twitter. Oct. 11, 2019. Among the responsibilities of the Chief Engineer aboard a ship is an analysis of the dysonium field condenser, a task which is performed once every month. Though it is a rather easy task, one that can be done by even first-year cadets according to Kelly Grayson, it is one that is considered tiresome by Chief Engineers such as John LaMarr.Episode 2x13: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow Dysonium can be found in large deposits on comets, moons, or some planets, usually in the mountains. The concentration of a deposit largely determines its usefulness as a power source. For example, in the episode Into the Fold, Isaac mines dysonium deposited locally on the Habitable Moon, but the concentration of dysonium is sufficient only to send a brief signal from a shuttle to the [[USS Orville|USS Orville]]. Because of its usefulness to space-capable civilizations, high-energy dysonium is the focus of extensive mining operations across many star systems by the Planetary Union,Kastra 4 is a Union mining colony. Episode 1x06: Krill. the Vega Mining Consortium,Episode 1x05: Pria and the Krill.The Krill lay claim to the resources of Chara 3. Episode 1x06: Krill. The element is a source of conflict, as civilizations battle for control of mining colonies.The Krill attack Kastra 4 and Chara 3 for its resources as well as to extinguish non-Krill life. Episode 1x06: Krill. History Mining Captain Pria Lavesque sends a distress call to the Orville after her ship Horizon is badly damaged on the surface of a comet. She landed on the comet to collect enough dysonium to power her ship. Later, Lavesque discusses negotiating mining rights with civilizations located on the frontier of known space with Captain Ed Mercer, Commander Kelly Grayson, and Lieutenant Gordon Malloy.Episode 1x05: Pria After crashing onto the surface of a moon, shuttle ECV-197-2's dysonium is depleted. The shuttle's energy is insufficient to run scanners or send a distress signal to the Orville. However, during its descent, the shuttle scraped against mountains, which left trace amounts of dysonium on the hull. Isaac walks to the mountains and collects dysonium. The element is not concentrated enough to do anything but send a weak signal to the parent ship.Episode 1x08: Into the Fold Through internal scans of Nyxia, a planet soon to be engulfed by its sun, Isaac reports that there is a high probability that deposits of dysonium ore exist beneath the surface. With Gordon noting that the dysonium is "free gas" for the Orville, Kelly points out that the amount of dysonium could power the ship for a year, asking Lieutenant John LaMarr if it can be collected after the planet breaks up. John suggests that by modifying a wide-range tractor beam, they can weed out all the fragments containing dysonium before hauling them into the Shuttle Bay; Captain Mercer gives him approval to proceed with Isaac. Soon after, Isaac's analysis suggests that the dysonium is not natural, indicating that a subterranean civilization exists on Nyxia.Episode 2x01: Ja'loja Production The concept of dysonium as a "fuel" for the quantum drive arose from the supervising producer, André Bormanis. He envisioned dysonium as a transuranic element that hosts an exotic material found in its nucleus with anti-gravitational properties that allows the extremely massive element to remain stable. Creator Seth MacFarlane listened to Bormanis's proposal and approved it with a simple 'sure.'"The Orville Fan Podcast “THINK”sgiving Episode w/ André Bormanis". Planetary Union Network. Nov. 21, 2017. "In my thinking, Dysonium is a weakly radioactive element somewhere on the 'island of stability' thought to exist on the Periodic Table, somewhere beyond what would be element 125 or 130," Bormanis has stated. "My conjecture .... is that in addition to 'magic' numbers of protons and neutrons, these elements might contain a shell of negative matter in their nuclei that helps render them stable."@TomCostantino. "From the mind of our own Andre Bormanis and the design of Doug Drexler. A little @TheOrville �� “science” for y’all. #TheOrville @hulu @planetary_union @NASA @JackatNasa @On2Mars_Kayla". Twitter. Oct. 11, 2019. The fictional element of dysonium replaced MacFarlane's originally intended fuel source for the Orville, thorium, a real element, but it could not produce the amount of energy necessary.Oullette, Jennifer. "The Orville blends science fiction and science fact into a winning mix". Ars Technica. Dec. 29, 2018. Bormanis also stated that he intended dysonium to have an atomic mass between 130 and 135. Trivia * According to André Bormanis, dysonium is named in honor of the physicist Freeman Dysonhttps://www.outerplaces.com/science/item/16774-orville-interview-andre-bormanis Appearances *''Episode 1x05: Pria'' *''Episode 1x08: Into the Fold'' *''Episode 2x02: Primal Urges'' *''Episode 2x13: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow'' Notes References Category:Elements